Dnieper Hydroelectric Station

Dnieper Hydroelectric Station
Dnieper Hydroelectric Station is located in Zaporizhzhia Oblast
Dnieper Hydroelectric Station
Location of the Dnieper Hydroelectric Station in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ukraine
CountryUkraine
LocationZaporizhzhia
Coordinates47°52′09″N 35°05′13″E / 47.86917°N 35.08694°E / 47.86917; 35.08694
StatusNot operational
Dam and spillways
ImpoundsDnieper river
Length800 m (2,600 ft)
Reservoir
Active capacity3.3 km3 (2,700,000 acre⋅ft)
Power Station
Operator(s)Ukrhydroenergo
TypeRun-of-the-river
Installed capacity1,578.6 MW

The Dnieper Hydroelectric Station (Ukrainian: ДніпроГЕС, romanizedDniproHES), also known as the Dnipro Dam, is a hydroelectric power station in the city of Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine. Operated by Ukrhydroenergo, it is the fifth and largest station in the Dnieper reservoir cascade, a series of hydroelectric stations on the Dnieper river that supply power to the Donets–Kryvyi Rih industrial region. Its dam has a length of 800 metres (2,600 ft), a height of 61 metres (200 ft), and a flow rate of 38.7 metres (127 ft) per second.[citation needed]

The dam elevates the Dnieper river by 37 metres (121 ft) and maintains the water level of the Dnieper Reservoir, which has a volume of 3.3 km3 and stretches 129 kilometres (80 mi) upstream to the nearby city of Dnipro. The reservoir's two shipping canals—the disused original one with three staircase locks and a newer one with one staircase lock—allow ships to bypass the dam at its eastern end and sail upstream as far as the Pripyat River. A highway on the dam and bridge over the shipping canals enable vehicles to cross the Dnieper.

The electric station was built by the Soviet Union from 1927 to 1932. After being destroyed during World War II to make it harder for advancing German forces to cross the river, it was rebuilt from 1944 to 1950. An expansion built from 1969 to 1980 quadrupled the station's output, with further modernization renovations conducted in the 2000s.[when?] On 22 March 2024, after the Dnipro Dam was hit by Russian missiles, power output at the Dnieper Hydroelectric Station came to a halt.[1]

  1. ^ Murray, Warren; writers, Warren Murray with Guardian (22 March 2024). "Ukraine war briefing: 'massive missile attack' hits Dnipro hydroelectric dam and affects nuclear plant". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077.